This invention relates to a handheld applicator for absorbing liquids for medical and personal hygiene purposes.
Handheld applicators for absorbing liquids for medical and personal hygiene purposes, in particular ear cleaning, are illustrated and described inter alia in U.S. Pat. Nos. 92,980, 147,660, 102,351, 2,510,490, 2,842,790, 4,804,362, 5,147,288 and U.S. Des. 318,531. Such applicators generally include an elongated support member with a cotton or brush-like swab and suffer from the fact that they tend to push ear wax subsisting in an ear canal deeper thereinto on their insertion and thereby have a detrimental affect on a subject""s hearing.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a handheld applicator for absorbing liquids for medical and personal hygiene purposes, the applicator comprising at least one elongated support member having a longitudinal axis and an initially thin liquid absorbent pellet securely fastened thereto at its distal end, the applicator having a substantially thin profile at least in the region of said distal end in an end view thereof in the direction of its associated longitudinal axis, said pellet capable of absorbing liquid whereupon it expands significantly in at least one direction perpendicular to its associated longitudinal axis in its associated end view to form a swab-like member.
The applicator of the present invention provides a convenient handheld device for a number of medical and personal hygiene purposes hitherto performed by conventional devices. In particular, the applicator of the present invention is suitable for absorbing water from a subjects ear canal whilst not pushing any earwax deeper thereinto on its initial insertion by virtue of its thin planar profile. Moreover, after its expansion, the swab-like member typically draws out subsisting earwax on its withdrawal from the ear. The pellet preferably contains alveolar cellulose known for its ability to absorb a volume of liquid considerably larger than its initial volume.